Chapter 27: Shouldering the Black Pot?

  The girl's voice was very soft, but in Zhang's ears it was infinitely amplified.

  She turned pale and sweated, calming herself down and said: "Can you go inform the mistress, how should we handle the situation in the study?"

  "Go call the mistress, in the study..." The little maid didn't dare say any more.

  Zhang suppressed the fire in his heart and said, "Don't make a sound, follow me to take a look."

  The two masters and servants walked hastily, without even saying hello, and went to the study. Although the young ladies of various mansions were curious, they thought she had something urgent to attend to and didn't mind, only Qin Dai noticed Zhang Shi's pale face and the faintly heard phrase "Fourth Miss".

  With her current physical sensitivity, it's impossible for her to mishear. Then this Fourth Miss must be Qin Ruoxin!

  The small study in the Jia mansion was already in a state of utter chaos.

  Mrs. Jia's face turned pale, sitting on the couch in the small study, coldly sizing up the man beside her who seemed to be somewhat out of his mind. Looking even worse than her was Fang Wanru standing beside her, if it weren't for the maid supporting her, she would have probably fainted and spat out foam by now.

  Inside the study, Qin Ruoxin's face was covered in tears, a pitiful sight that tugged at one's heartstrings. Yet, apart from Jia Baoyu who was still unconscious, it seemed like no one believed she was the victim.

  What a coincidence, Fourth Miss got lost alone and didn't even run into a single servant. Not only did she fail to find her way back, but she ended up walking all the way to the small study. It just so happened that Second Master had been drinking with his friends today and had just finished the banquet when he ran into Fourth Miss. Normally, Second Master's capacity for wine was quite good, and his behavior was also decent. Why did he suddenly go crazy today and grab Fourth Miss's sleeve?

  Zhang's gaze involuntarily swept over Fang Wanru, seeing that she looked like she was about to faint, and his heart slightly calmed down. As long as it wasn't a conspiracy between the Qin family's upper and lower levels, this matter could still be salvaged. Fang Shi had her heart set on marrying off her legitimate daughter, and she wouldn't be foolish enough to do something like this; could it be that all of this was planned by this timid little maid in front of him?

  Things still need to be handled, and everyone's silence is not a solution to the problem.

  "Mother, this matter concerns Miss Qin's reputation, what do you think?"

  Madam Wang's words were double-edged, and Lady Jia understood them clearly. She sighed: "This unfilial son has caused such a thing to happen, it's all because I didn't teach him well enough! Madam Qin, why don't you just pick a date for them?"

  Upon hearing this, Fang's face turned pale, but for the sake of dignity, she had to pretend to be calm and said: "Not many people know about this matter. If Second Master marries Ruoxin like this, it would indeed be a perfect match."

  Qin Ruoxin still looked the same on the surface, but in her heart, she was so angry that her teeth itched.

  Zhang Shi hastily said: "I'll help the fourth miss change her clothes!" This matter was not suitable to be mentioned in front of the person involved.

  Qin Ruoxin got up and bowed, then followed Zhang's wife downstairs, even if she was unhappy, she knew it wasn't suitable for her to stay in this situation.

  "Sister, it's not entirely Second Master's fault now. It's settled like this, but I feel a bit unbearable in my heart. This little fourth one hasn't even reached adulthood yet, and there are still two older sisters who haven't married...” Fang Wanru pretended to be troubled, with an uneasy expression.

  "Madam Qin, why are you being so particular? It's just taking a concubine, do we need to go through the three letters and six etiquettes?" Madam Jia didn't even lift an eyebrow, her tone was very nonchalant.

  Take concubines?

  Fang Wanru's eyes lit up for a moment, if it was just taking a concubine, what did she have to be afraid of.

  "No need, no need, it's not necessary. It's just... now the second master of the house is also getting old, I think it would be better to have a pair." Fang Wanru's words were laced with double meaning, and her hopes were rekindled once again.

  Madam Jia wouldn't misunderstand her meaning and replied: "If it's about marriage, I'm afraid we can't be careless. We have to discuss it with our master first."

  Her tone was slightly relaxed, which made Fang Wanyu's heart feel a little happy.

  A group of people had their own thoughts and didn't want to hide from guests all the time. Zhang Shi had already helped Fourth Miss change her clothes, and several people returned to Mei Garden as if nothing was wrong.

  The gathering of the ladies usually came to an end in the afternoon, after lunch, the wives and daughters of various officials came one after another to bid farewell, and Fang Wanru also took the women of the Qin Mansion back to their mansion by carriage.

  As soon as they entered the inner house, Fang Wanru dismissed everyone else and only left Fourth Miss in the room to talk. Qin Dai Xin knew that something big must have happened in the afternoon, and with her sharp eyes, she also discovered that Qin Ruoxin had changed into a different dress, although it was the same color, the pattern was different, and it was no longer the one she wore in the morning.

  The matter of the Jia family's appreciation for plum blossoms had just come to an end when news arrived that Qin Ruoxin was going to marry into the Jia family as a concubine. Wang Yiniang knelt outside Madame Wang's room for several hours but couldn't see her. It is unknown what Madame Wang said to Haitang and her, but she obediently got up and returned to her own courtyard.

  Ru Yi was somewhat unhappy, she knew that Fourth Miss was a troublemaker. It was obviously Third Miss's marriage, and Second Miss came to fight for it, but at least she was the legitimate daughter, with her mother protecting her. What was Fourth Miss doing, stirring up trouble?

  "This is getting interesting. Fourth Miss's reputation will be tarnished if she doesn't win, and this concubine might just make it happen." Truly a blessing in disguise.

  Qin Dai Xin held a book in her hand, listening to Ruyi's soft discussion, and the corner of her mouth curled up unintentionally. Whoever wants to argue can do so, she doesn't care. However, only people like Su Shi and Ruyi who are close to her would feel sorry for her, while others might not even have time to laugh at her.

  "Miss, you should consider your own interests, and fight for them when it comes to marriage." Ruyi casually picked up some things in the room and added a sentence.

  Marriage is something that can't be controlled by oneself, and in this era of blind marriages, being a concubine's daughter means one has to follow the family's arrangements. However, if it really comes down to marrying a 40- or 50-year-old lecher, she wouldn't mind killing him and running away.

  Ai Lian entered the house and saw Qin Dai Xin's face covered in a cold glow, which scared her into hastily lowering her head and calling Ruyi to leave. Qin Dai Xin glanced at Ai Lian's back and thought that this little girl might have been frightened by herself, so she didn't bother with their departure and continued reading the book in her hand.

  After a short while, Yiyi lifted the curtain and entered the house, followed by a fragrant osmanthus scent.

  "Miss, Xiu Mei has brought the fragrance." He said, presenting a small pouch.

  An ordinary embroidered pouch with a simple lotus pattern, nothing special about it. The fragrance of osmanthus was coming from this pouch.

  Qin Dai Xin opened the pouch and carefully identified the flowers and grasses inside. The flowers and grasses were ground into extremely fine powder, if Qin Dai Xin wasn't very familiar with their scent, she probably wouldn't have been able to recognize them either.

  "What's wrong, miss?" Ruyi's mind was full of question marks. What was so special about this incense that it was worth the young lady's meticulous study?

  "Go to Auntie's place for a trip." Qin Dai put down the book in her hand, and couldn't help but mutter to herself, who was this girl being instructed by.

  "Yes." Ruyi got the errand and hurried to make arrangements. The weather was getting colder and colder, if she wasn't careful, Miss would catch a cold, what would happen then?

  Qin Dai Xin dressed neatly and only allowed Ruyi to follow her to the Sus' courtyard.

  The time for dinner had already passed, but in Su's house, several dishes were still laid out, only one of which had not been touched and had gone cold a long time ago.

  Qin Dai's heart moved, and the wet nurse hurriedly came forward, "Miss has come just in time, please advise your aunt!"

  "What's wrong?" with a thick tone of concern.

  "She said she couldn't eat a thing, and didn't even take one bite." The wet nurse was so anxious that she kept sighing, but there was nothing she could do.

  Qin Dai Xin sat down on the kang by the window and asked softly, "Auntie, is it because you have a stuffy chest and dizziness that you can't eat?"

  Su was taken aback, she hadn't expected her to hit the nail on the head all at once.

  "It's exactly like that, how did you know, miss?" Fang Jiao was serving tea on the side and heard Qin Dai Xin say this, also taking a fright.

  Qin Dai Xin let Ruyi and Fang Qiao retreat, then said to the two people in the house: "This is not a coincidence, nor is it a normal reaction of pregnancy. It's man-made."

  "Man-made?" The wet nurse was shocked, isn't this harming people?

  Qin Dai Xin opened the handbag brought by Ruyi and said, "The last time I came to Auntie's house, I smelled a good fragrance of osmanthus. At that time, I felt something was wrong in my heart, so I asked Ruyi to secretly ask the little maid who delivered food to bring it over. Does Auntie smell this scent?"

  Su heard it and felt extremely familiar, thinking for a moment: "Where have I smelled this before?"

  "What's wrong with this smell?" The wet nurse's heart was in her throat.

  "This fragrance was originally carried by that little girl, who is in charge of the aunt's daily life. Every day when she delivers food, the fragrance is inadvertently emitted. The few flowers and grasses inside are originally harmless to the body, but when placed together, they can easily make people lose their appetite and vomit continuously. Now that Aunt is pregnant, it's feared that smelling this fragrance for a long time will be bad for her body." Qin Dai's words were very subtle, but Su Shi and the wet nurse were both experienced women who understood the severity of the situation.

  The wet nurse said angrily: "This little hoof, who gave her the guts to do such a thing?" Although she was angry, she also knew the severity of the matter and kept her voice low.

  In contrast to Nai'niang's indignation, Su was silent. As for the struggle within the mansion, she understood it all too well.

  "It was discovered early, and there hasn't been much impact." It's a blessing in disguise.

  "We should report to the master immediately, and we must discipline this girl properly. Thirty slaps on the buttocks and she'll be thrown out of the house." The wet nurse's face turned bright red with anger, her voice rising several degrees without realizing it.

  Qin Dai's voice was low and gentle: "Nanny, it can't be that easy. She's just a little maid, we haven't treated her unfairly, why would she take such a risk to harm the madam? Someone must have instructed her. For now, the most important thing is to figure out how to get rid of this maid without alerting anyone, and find out who is behind it all."

  Su Shi looked at Qin Dai and thought: "A Li, you're different now."

  Qin Dai's eyes were clear and bright as she responded, "Auntie, people can change. If I was still the same Ah Li from before, then I'm afraid I would have definitely been saddled with the blame for harming the Qin family's descendants today."